For a Brother
by Secretly Insane
Summary: What happens to Sasuke the night Sakura and Ino go out? A spinoff one shot to Skittle Junkies for Dazynl8, winner of the chapter meaning contest. Look underneath the underneath!


**ok This is my prize one shot for Dazynl8! She won my chapter contest for Skittle Junkies! She wanted to know what happened to Sasuke while Sakura and Ino went out! I hope you all enjoy it! For those who haven't read the main story, you should cause it'll make this story all the better!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Just love writing.**

The sun was glimmering brightly through the seams of the curtains, keeping the rest of the room in streaked twilight. In the world beyond a cacophony of city noises reverberated nonstop while inside was a muffled silence. Sitting in his easy chair deep in thought, a man in his late twenties sipped his coffee.

It was mid afternoon and he had long since given up on the mailman bringing him good news. He stopped getting hopeful for replies by mail or phone about upcoming jobs. It used to be that he would wait eagerly, hoping that his agent in the work office would call with a job offer. He had many skills, but he was also happy to learn a new trade if it meant a steady pay. But nothing came. Each day passed and no work. Each day became another disappointment.

What made it worse was that his girlfriend did have a job. He loved Sakura, would do anything for her. He even took her away to start a new life together, despite what both their families thought. It just hadn't occurred to him that she would be able to get work and support him. It didn't sit well with a man who liked to have everything in control. He was supposed to take care of her.

And then he started drinking. Even as he thought about it, he looked down at the coffee in his hand. It was getting worse. Everyone drank from time to time, but Sasuke had taken it to a whole other level. Whether it was beer, or a variation of some hard liquor, he was always imbibing. And it showed. Hair that was once well groomed and a shining black now lay limply in thick grimy strands that desperately needed a trim. Clothes that had been washed regularly and worn with pride now were being used several times between washings and showed food stains or were half-hazardly adorned.

He hadn't meant for it to get to where it was either. Some part of him knew that he was ruining his life. But every day that passed and he was passed up for someone younger or with some college degree, Sasuke drank a little bit more. And every day that _she _went to work it was like she slapped him in the face for being such a failure. As if he wasn't trying hard enough, she had to support both of them. He hadn't wanted her to shoulder any burden at all and now she was taking all of it.

The more he thought about the state of things, Sasuke wondered if maybe she was thinking of leaving him. That thought made his blood run cold. What could he do without her? Better yet, what could she do without him? This made him all the more depressed, because he knew that the bottom line was that she could do just fine without him. She didn't know it, but she could stand on her own. It was just the fear of being alone that stopped her from realizing it. This was Sasuke's only comfort. He had convinced her that she could only survive while at his side. That he was the only one who could protect her from the world and its hurts.

A heavy knock at the door made the young man in thought jump, then curse as hot coffee spilt on his shirt. Patting a towel on his chest as he walked, Sasuke grumbled about ruining another of his shirts.

"What?" he asked gruffly as he pulled the door open. When he raised his eyes they widened at the ray of sunshine before him.

"Wow you look like crap," Naruto exclaimed with a big smile as he pushed into the apartment. Sasuke yelped as the door slid over his toe.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he inquired as he started to close the door.

"We hadn't heard from you in a while," another voice replied as his effort to shut the door was stopped halfway through. Pulling the door back a little, their oldest friend Kakashi wandered into the room with his nose stuck in a book. Face going slightly red, Sasuke tried again to close the door. This time as it snapped closed he heard a thud and a muffled curse. Inwardly sighing, he pulled it open to reveal who had collided with the wood. Neji stood there holding his nose and muttering something under his breath.

"Sorry," Sasuke grunted as he abandoned the door in pursuit of his brother. Naruto had since wandered into the kitchen where he proceeded to rummage through the cupboards.

"Yea, we wanted to know if you wanted to get together to play some cards. How about it?" the blonde asked as he pulled out a half filled jug of milk. Sasuke, in response, punched his brother in the stomach.

"How many times have I told you? Call, don't just show up. Use the phone you moron. It's rude to just barge in without any warning," Sasuke growled clearly in a bad mood. He didn't like when people invaded his house, especially his younger brother. Naruto grunted on impact, dropping the jug to hold his side.

"What the hell man?" he gasped. Then he turned slightly and punched Sasuke in the stomach. Both men held their middles and gasping for breath in the center of the kitchen. Kakashi lifted his eyes from the book, a look of slight interest gracing his features before dropping them again.

"Boys," he muttered with a self amused expression and a shake of his head.

"Have you got any plans?" Neji asked in an uninterested way. He knew better than to get between those two. As far back as anyone cared to think, Sasuke and Naruto often showed their affections through violence. Even when they looked like they were about to kill one another, they always ended up laughing about it in the end. Right on que Sasuke shook his head as he straightened, a smile tweaking his pained face.

"No. Sakura is over at Ino's for the night."

"That's great! Then you can come with us!" Naruto cheered, fist pumping the air having completely recovered from the love tap. When his counterpart stared at him darkly, Naruto let his lip jut out and his eyes get big and watery.

"You…you don't wanna go?" Seeing that pathetic display, Sasuke sighed and resigned himself to his fate. He hadn't hung out with the guys in such a long time. It might not be so bad. The Uchiha had never been so wrong.

A few minutes later, Sasuke was piled into a van with his friends and on the way to Naruto's. The blonde rented a house just on the other side of the highway. It was technically the countryside, but still well within town to get there and not need a pit stop. When they pulled into the driveway, two other cars were already parked.

"Looks like the crew has already arrived," Neji observed as he opened the sliding door.

"It's not just us?" Sasuke asked apprehensively. Large groups had never been his thing. He preferred smaller groups if anyone at all. Part of it was that he didn't want anyone to notice him and start asking hard to answer questions like how work was or if he managed to get his junker of a car fixed. The rest was just plain antisocialness. Sasuke always felt under prepared when dealing with people.

"Don't worry. We aren't holding a Bonko tournament," Kakashi droned in a false comforting voice. The silver haired man had known these guys since they were very small and knew just how to push their buttons.

"No one plays that anymore," Sasuke countered cooly.

"What? They don't?" Naruto pouted at the news as they made their way inside. "Well maybe one of these days we should." In unison, all three of his friends said no. This made the blonde giggle.

"Hello? I'm home!" Naruto yelled as they kicked their shoes off inside the entrance. A thunder of feet pounded through the house towards them.

"Naruto! Thank god! I need a needle, some fishing line and peroxide!"Kiba yelled as him and his dog bolted from one room to the next. "Lee slipped on the diving board and cut his leg!"

All the men bolted into action. Naruto ran down the hall to his bathroom to grab his first aid kit while yelling at them where to find the needle and line. Neji followed Kiba to search for the supplies and Kakashi followed Sasuke as they went out to the back yard.

A wide patio stretched along the length of the house before leading off to a small patch of grass and an above ground pool. A grill was sizzling off to the side and the pool sat undisturbed, except for the streak of blood along the metal latter. Beside it sat Lee in bright green swim trunks holding his leg and trying not to cry. Their large friend Choji kneeled beside him, trying to fan his sweating face.

"What happened?" Kakashi asked somberly, having finally set aside his book to get a better look. Lee shook his head, making his bowl cut hair sway back and forth.

"I don't know. I was going to go for a swim and the next thing I know, I'm slipping to the side and the metal snagged my leg. See?" He moved his hand gingerly to expose the wound. Everyone hissed in worry at the sight.

Whatever part had caught his leg had driven a path from his knee all the way down to almost his ankle. Blood oozed out quicker with the pressure gone, making the gash look wider. Going slightly pale, Lee hurriedly reapplied pressure while biting back a pained yelp. When Naruto and the others returned they too looked worriedly at the wound.

"Shouldn't we like take him to the hospital?" Choji asked softly as he shifted his gaze from the leg to his friends.

"No. This is nothing. Just stitch it up and I'll be fine," Lee retorted with a weak smile. He had always been like that. No matter what he did, no matter how hard be pushed himself physically, he never wanted doctors help. Sasuke wondered if maybe he had that phobia of white coats.

"So. . . who should do it then?" Naruto looked around at everyone hopefully. He didn't mind the sight of blood, but the idea of doing something that might hurt his friend was too much. Everyone fell silent for a moment.

"Uh guys. Someone has to do it. I'm kinda bleeding out here," Lee reminded them as his face continued to pale. The grass around him thankfully absorbed the blood around them, but his leg was still oozing bright crimson.

"I'll do it," Sasuke decided. He noticed the collective sigh and couldn't help his sigh of irritation. They were always like that. In the end it was always him that had to do the dirty work.

"Oh, the food!" Choji realized in horror. He had left the grill unattended during the emergency. Quicker than one might expect from someone his size, Choji ran across the patio to man his station once more. Sasuke couldn't help notice how everyone else seemed just as keen to find another activity to avoid the activity he was about to perform. All that is, except Naruto. He sat on his knees beside Lee with a determined look on his face.

"Do it quickly ok Sasuke? But don't hurt him."

"Won't make any promises," he countered as he uncapped the peroxide. "In fact, this one is definitely going to hurt."

*****AIYAH!*****

Lee sat happily drunk a couple hours later. They had found that giving him a few of Kiba's famous jell-o shots helped to ease his pain. The stitches were uneven but they held for the time being. They had it wrapped in gauze and propped on a lawn chair cushion while they sat at the picnic table.

For his services, Sasuke was also blissfully drunk. Everyone seemed keen to give him another shot even when he told them he had enough. His worries about being scrutinized fluttered beneath the haze of alcohol and the hum of friendly banter.

They had played poker until everyone was too drunk to hold all their cards faced one way. It wasn't until he started getting a serious head rush slash stomach ache that he realized something was wrong.

"Kiba," he called slowly. It took him a moment to really focus on what he was going to ask. The man he called staggered closer and flopped down beside him. Leaning into him heavily, Kiba slurred,

"Yehah. Wasurp Sassssukeee! Watchu nee?" Before he could reply, Sasuke leaned forward and lurched his dinner onto the patio. His head swam and he couldn't seem to make the world not move so fast.

"Wharts in them jellos?" he asked as he wiped his mouth. The others didn't seem to notice his ejection as they continued to either drink or laugh or both. He felt slightly disgusted with himself, but the pain in his gut drove his thoughts into drunken focus.

"Jellos? Yumm taquilla," Kiba replied as he grabbed one from the table and slurped it up. The sound made Sasuke's stomach clench. He should have known. He could handle beer, he could handle whiskey, and he definitely could handle vodka. Taquilla, on the other hand, was his worst enemy.

"I hate you guys," he grumbled coherently. The guys laughed unceremoniously and threw another drink into his hands. But like any drunk, his sense of judgment was lacking. So with a shrug he knocked it back.

He'd just have to deal with them tomorrow.

**Love it? Hate it? Let me know!**


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